I'm really on the fence here and this close to buying either a 336ss (30-30) or an 1895 (45-70). If I get a 30-30, can I play at 400 yards like JustsayMo? Please? also worried about cost of ammunition and availability. 30-30 is good on both of those, but I don't know if it has the performance I want.

Panzercat, if you don't reload or live in Alaska then the choice is easy, get the 30-30.

Performance wise the 30-30 is an overachiever. A buddy of mine's father-in-law has a GIANT Brown Bear rug thanks to his 30-30. Shot the bear in his own yard. He's lived in Alaska since before it was a State and the 30-30 is all he's ever owned. Hunts and fishes for all his own meat.

By bro-in-law took a nice 250+ pound Black bear off the front porch of his cabin last year with his 30-30 (Winchester) Worked splendidly.

Most factory 45-70 is anemic (safe for trapdoor Springfields) and the good stuff, when you can find it makes even Bill Gates grimace. Even when reloading shooting the 45-70 is a spendy proposition. Components are spendy. I can shoot my own reloads for about half of my 45-70 reloads.

Now for grin factor, the 45-70 wins.

All of the 1895's I've owned have been (VERY) accurate and not finicky - so long as the cast bullet diameter was .459" or larger. Jacketed ammo and bullets I've tried (Hornady and Remington) all shot well too. The 45-70 is highly impressive on game too. So far on both Black Bears and Elk no tracking has been required.

Both do well at long range...

Probably didn't make your choice any easier. Actually there is no choice other than which to buy first. You NEED them both.

I hate to jump in like this but feel this is the best place to ask.Can any one tell me the value of a 90% or better 336 Marlin w/walnut stock 20 inch barrel rifle may be.Some one put a butt pad on this rifle some years ago.It is a 1979 model and may have had the pad all those years.Allso all it says is 336 no letters at all.My friend really needs to sell this rifle and i told him if any one knows it would be you people.Maybe some one here would even like this rifle.I can send pics but not till i get back over to his place.Thanks for any help you may have.

Thanks Mo!
Since I won't be hand loading for a while yet, sounds like the 30-30 is the better investment. Still want to try for those 400yrd shots tho

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I had a chance not that long ago to shoot at 400 yards at 24"x24" steel. Using a 1 to 2 foot holdover and Leverevolution rounds I connected 4 out of 5 times. The rifle also has a 2.5x Leupold scope and a 16.75" barrel with a 200 yard zero. I'm a 3 MOA shooter. For social plinking on occassion you should be fine at 400 yards.

Very nice rifle Panzercat. Out of curiosity, what is the mfg and model of the knife in the photo? I like it as well and am always looking for a better hunting knife. The hunting rifles are all taken care of and include a 30-30 (my favorite).

The knife? LOL, it's a cheepo MTech frame-lock that i found on google for somewhere in the vicinity of $10 if not less. I'm not sure you'd want it for anything other than a beater

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LOL. Thanks for the info. I'm not a knife snob by any stretch of the imagination. I don't think I've ever spent more than $75ish on a knife and the classic KBar was the most expensive. However, I think I will stay away from a $10 knife for my hunting knife. FWIW, my daily carry (won't quite call it a beater as it's nicer than that) is the Swiss Army Tinkerer. Typically runs about $20 and has served me well for the last 15ish years. I've lost about three of them over that time but they're inexpensive enough where I don't worry about it. Technically, I didn't loose them, TSA absconded two of them when in 2002 I used to fly enough and couldn't remember to remove prior to going to airport (been carrying a pocketknife since I was 7). Vatican took the other one on one arbitrary day whereas the other two visits in the same week they were fine with it.

I had a chance not that long ago to shoot at 400 yards at 24"x24" steel. Using a 1 to 2 foot holdover and Leverevolution rounds I connected 4 out of 5 times. The rifle also has a 2.5x Leupold scope and a 16.75" barrel with a 200 yard zero. I'm a 3 MOA shooter. For social plinking on occassion you should be fine at 400 yards.

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Ever try the Pine bullet drop compensated scope calibrated for .30-30 LeveRevolution round? It is from Cabellas. I love mine, I won't think twice about taking a deer at 300 yards with it.

Took mine out for a test fire, thumps nice and good. Sights are still off so I'll be fixing that this weekend. Until then, I dropped a whole $3 on a neoprene buttstock Yeah, leather would have been better, but my wallet would have cried... quickly followed by my wife smacking me upside the head

Yeah I was bored. And yeah, it's home is atop an Ikea lamp
Debating whether I should go in for the 20rnd ammunition sling to replace that synthetic one there now.

Panzercat That ammo sling and the butt cuff would be dandy for a rifle/ammo that needs to be ready to head out the door in a moment's notice. Once in the field my own preference is to have the rifle lightweight and unencumbered as it spends most of its time in my hands whilst on the move.

At my cabin the rifle(s) are generally left the "Cruiser Ready" condition. My 336 CB in 30-30 usually has 4-6 "Papa Johns" in the tube with another box at the ready and an open mixed box of subsonic and reduced load cast bullets for varmint duty. That way if'n I'm being raided by vermin I can quietly solve the problem by sliding in a round or two of the cast loads and save my PJ's for the big stuff.

The world famous (or is that infamous?) Papa John 30-30 load= 150 grain Remington Core-Lokt bullet over IMR 4895.

While it probably isn't one of those loads that Moses brought down on the back of the tablets, it appears to have been divinely inspired (discovered accidentally) and for whatever reason seems to shoot very well in many (most?) 30-30's.

I believe there are more details on this load hidden within this very thread, including a post or too from the man himself, Papa John.

Ok can I join??? My wife bought the 336RC and I bought a 30AS last weekend. Both in 30-30. Im also a proud member of the 39A club as well. Attached is my crappy cell phone pic as proof. Were starting to think about slings, scopes or Skinner sights. I also need a spur. All in due time.

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